


It takes a human to know a human

by AndromedaofOthys



Category: Star Wars Legends: Shadows of the Empire - Steve Perry
Genre: Freedom, Introspection, Not entirely fake cultural studies, Other, thoughts on humanity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-08
Updated: 2019-11-08
Packaged: 2021-01-25 13:17:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21356866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AndromedaofOthys/pseuds/AndromedaofOthys
Summary: It takes a human to knows a human... or does it?Guri is a human replica droid: not fully human, but not truly droid, either. How does she find balance between those two? How to be both, but neither at the same time? Can you be one, while being the other?Written for Yuletide 2019
Relationships: Guri(Star Wars) & Xizor (Star Wars)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4
Collections: Yuletide 2019





	It takes a human to know a human

**Author's Note:**

  * For [shanlyrical](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shanlyrical/gifts).

> Wee-yeah! My first foray into Yuletide fest... am excited! This was seriously fun, and I already can't wait for the next year!  
I haven't been in Star Wars Legends fandoms for _ages_, so this was a pleasant challenge - Shadows of the Empire, together with Thrawn Trilogy and New Jedi Order, was my favorite book, so it feels really nostalgic to come back to it and write a fanfic for this tag. I hope you like my little introspective piece on Guri, dear shanlyrical!

For the first time in her life, Guri had absolutely no idea what to do with herself.

She had never not had a purpose before: from the point when she had become conscious, in her Maker’s lab, to her long and success-filled time in Black Sun, under Prince Xizor’s orders, there was always something to do, and someone who told her what to do. She _could_ think for herself – even the most basic of ‘droids had limited logic circuits, it would be an _insult_ if she, a human replica droid, couldn’t – but she wasn’t used to it.

She had no previous parameters, no data to fall back onto, and she was… scared was a bit too strong of a word. _Unnerved_, now that sounded like good word to describe how she was feeling as she glided down Coruscant’s many, many levels, searching for a safe landing zone for her and her paraglider.

It had seemed so easy, to choose her own freedom instead of dying for failing her mission, when confronted by Luke Skywalker’s clear blue eyes and unwavering confidence, both in himself and in her. The young Jedi simply had a way of making you believe into anything he said, and Guri could understand why the Rebels used his voice and face as propaganda. The added relation he held with Vader… she was no ordinary human, but she had seen the effect the Dark Lord of the Sith had on almost everyone he met with. _Like father like son, indeed. Even if said son had no recorded contact with his father for over nineteen years._

The problem with idealists, however, was their inability – or unwillingness, in some cases – to be pragmatic. They talked big, but did not calculate in the real-world consequences of what they were suggesting. No matter, Guri could think of something. Surviving, she could do – at least until she found another purpose.

She may not be in Black Sun’s employ anymore, but she never did well with rest.

Touching down on what she roughly estimated to be a level halfway between the beautiful Upper City and seedy, crime-infested Lower City of Imperial Centre, she lifted her head up just in time to witness yet another one of Skywalker’s impossible escapes. _Virago_ , Prince Xizor’s personal skycraft, was being systematically reduced to rubble by Lord Vader’s Death Squadron that had returned to the capital, while the _Millenium Falcon_ and what looked like a squadron of X-wings escaped planetary gravitation and the sector Navy, making a successful jump into the hyperspace.

Guri could only shake her head. _Unbelievable_. If their short-lived duel had not confirmed the fact Luke Skywalker was indeed a Jedi Knight, this daring and seemingly impossible escape certainly did it.

_I wish I could be as free as he is._

A thought crossed her mind, and Guri froze in her tracks. She hadn’t had these kind of thoughts since… since she was given to Prince Xizor, really. Maybe even before. Was it worth it? Looking for a new way of life, like Skywalker had suggested it to her?

Unsure what to do, Guri decided to do what she did best: systematically analyze all pros and cons, and see whether it was worth it.

A trip to the Central Library was in order.

* * *

After fooling and charming the guard at the entrance of the Central into letting her use the terminal without the membership card and additional fee, Guri found herself in a predicament. What, exactly, constituted as being ‘human’? What exactly made humans and other intelligent species different from the droids?

The articles and books available were both illuminating and frustratingly vague: they did point out the difference between droids and living species (no shared cultural identity, no sense of higher unity between them like Rodians or Twilek or humans from various planets had, no perception of the higher purpose other than their programming), but it still didn’t answer her the question of what, and how, humans identified themsleves as humans.

Was it the emotion? Well, she did have the chip for that, and she was reasonably certain she could feel everything humans did. Memories? No, that didn’t make any sense.

Shared cultural identity… now she felt like she was getting somewhere with it. What was it? A short search later, and she was busy taking notes on a scrap of flimsi she had nicked from the front desk while she as charming the guard into letting her in.

_Shared cultural identity, in layman’s terms, can be described as a feeling of belonging to a group of people through the shared language, customs, values, and, in majority of cases, blood bonds or the birth place (see chapter 6 for the list and description of the exceptions to this rule)._

Guri twirled her stylus, thinking about it. Language – well, Galactic Basic was the baseline for almost all humans, but many planets also had their own specific languages that she would need to study if she wanted to blend in. Customs were obvious – all species had their unique customs, and Guri had them all memorized already.

Values and place of birth or blood bonds… now this looked like a obstacle. From experience, Guri knew that, even if you married into a different culture, you will forever be considered an outsider, and she was not going to tolerate it. The chapter on the exceptions…

She clicked on it, and the first name instantly caught her attention.

_Mandalore._

Eyebrows raised, Guri started reading through the list. She knew about Mandalore about as much as the rest of the galaxy did – that is, almost nothing beyond their reputation for bounty hunters and bloodthirsty tendencies.

_Resol’nare_.

_Families based on merit and adoption._

_Everyone welcome._

Well, Guri would be lying if she didn’t find the prospect intriguing. Joining Mandalorians seemed to be as easy as finding someone who will take you into their clan, proving you’re a capable fighter, learning Mando’a, and being loyal to your clan and Manda’lore if they ever surfaced again (Guri sincerely doubted that would happen again, not after the near-extinction of Kryze clan and the fall into disgrace of Vizsla House by the hands of Sith). All in all, rather easy in comparison. She could even continue doing what she was doing before.

However… it still rubbed her wrong. She _didn’t_ want to continue living like she had before. Wasn’t the entire point of her leaving Black Sun trying to get rid of her assassin programming, and starting a more normal life?

The information mocked her from the screen, and she felt a sense of deja-vu; this was almost the same as her situation only hours ago, when Luke Skywalker spared her life, and offered her a new chance.

This time, however, she had time to think, time to decide, take everything into the account.

What was she going to choose?

* * *

Later that day, after the closing hours, a cleaning droid rolled over to the terminals, checking if they were all shut down properly. All but one was – the one a mysterious blonde woman that seemingly understood binary had used earlier.

Chirping softly, the droid initiated the shutdown sequence, closing down the final search on the terminal:

_Space traders._


End file.
